Healthy Workplaces for Nurses: A Review of Lateral Violence and Evidence-Based Interventions

Abstract

Most nurses in the United States have experienced workplace bullying, also referred to as lateral violence. Workplace bullying is serious within professional nursing practice. These behaviors are often associated with detrimental consequences for nurses, their patients, and the greater health care organization. We performed a literature review to summarize recent studies on this pervasive yet persistent problem as well as evidence-based solutions. In environments where managers, supervisors, and administrators are unable or unwilling to address lateral violence, a common pattern is that offenders continue to target new employees and cause turmoil for workers and patients in healthcare settings. This work environment also causes harm and endangers patients. Although workplace bullying cannot be fixed with just one solution, there are different initiatives healthcare settings and educational institutions can implement to help prevent and eliminate workplace bullying, such as improving leadership training and interprofessional communication. Once these initiatives are put into practice, healthcare practices can start saving money, increasing employee satisfaction, retaining workers, and providing better healthcare services for their patients.